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伯特兰罗素《弗兰西斯培根》中英文互译••伯特兰•阿瑟•威廉・罗素Bertrand ArthurWilliam Russell,1872—1970,英国哲学家、数学家、逻辑学家、历史学家、文学家,分析哲学的主要创始人,世界和平运动的倡导者和组织者,主要作品有《西方哲学史》《哲学问题》《心的分析》《物的分析》等罗素不仅在哲学、逻辑和数学上成就显著,在教育学、社会学、政治学和文学等许多领域也都颇有建树Francis Bacon弗兰西斯培根•FRANCIS BACON1561-1626,although hisphilosophy is in manywaysunsatisfactory,has permanentimportance as the founderof moderninductive method andthe pioneerin theattempt atlogical systematizationofscientic procedure....弗兰西斯培根是近代归纳法的创始人,又是给科学研究程序进行逻辑•1561—1626组织化的先驱,所以尽管他的哲学有许多地方欠圆满,他仍旧占有永久不倒的重要地位……Bacons mostimportant book,The Advancementof Learning,isinmanyways remarkablymodern.He iscommonly regardedas theoriginator ofThepart playedby deductionin scienceis greaterthan Baconsupposed.Often,when ahypothesis hasto be tested,there is a longdeductivejourney fromthe hypothesis to someconsequence thatcan betested byobservation.Usually thededuction ismathematical,and inthis respectBaconunderestimated the importance ofmathematics inscientificinvestigation.演绎在科学中起的作用,比培根想的要大当一个假说必须验证时,从这假说到某个能由观察来验证的结论,往往有一段漫长的演绎程序这种演绎通常是数理推演,所以在这点上培根低估了数学在科学研究中的重要性The problemof induction by simple enumeration remainsunsolved tothisday.Bacon wasquite rightin rejectingsimple enumerationwhere thedetailsof scientificinvestigation are concerned,for indealing withdetailswe mayassume generallaws onthe basisof which,so longas theyaretaken asvalid,more orless cogentmethods canbe builtup.John StuartMillframed fourcanons ofinductive method,which canbe usefullyemployedso longas thelaw ofcausality isassumed;but thislaw itselfhehad toconfess,isto be acceptedsolely onthe basisof induction by simpleenumeration.The thingthat isachieved by the theoreticalorganization ofscienceis thecollection ofall subordinateinductions intoa fewthat areverycomprehensive-perhaps onlyone.Such comprehensiveinductions areconfirmedby somany instancesthat itis thoughtlegitimate toaccept,asregards them,an inductionby simple enumeration.This situationisprofoundly unsatisfactory,but neitherBacon norany of his successorshavefound away outof it.单纯枚举归纳问题到今天依旧是悬案涉及科学研究的细节,培根排斥单纯枚举归纳,这完全正确因为在处理细节的时候,我们可以假定一般法则,只要认为这种法则妥善,就能够以此为基础,建立起来多少还比较有力的方法约翰・斯图亚特・穆勒设出归纳法四条规范,只要假定因果律成立,四条规范都能用来有效但是穆勒也得承认,因果律本身又完全在单纯枚举归纳的基础上才信得过科学的理论组织化所做到的事情就是把一切下级的归纳归拢成少数很概括的归纳——也许只有一个这样的概括的归纳因为被许多的事例所证实,便认为就它们来讲,合当承认单纯枚举归纳这种事态真不如意到极点,但是无论培根或他的任何后继者,都没从这局面中找到一条出路1the sayingKnowledge ispower/and thoughhe mayhave hadpredecessorswho saidthe samething,he saidit withnew emphasis.Thewhole basisof hisphilosophy waspractical:to givemankind masteryoverthe forcesof natureby meansof scientificdiscoveries andinventions.Heheld thatphilosophy should be keptseparate fromtheology,not intimatelyblendedwith itas inscholasticism.He acceptedorthodox religion;he wasnotthe manto quarrelwith thegovernment onsuch amatter.But whilehethought thatreason couldshow theexistence ofGod,he regardedeverythingelse in theology asknown onlyby revelation.Indeed he heldthat the triumph of faith isgreatest whento theunaided reasona dogmaappearsmost absurd.Philosophy,however,should dependonly uponreason.He wasthus anadvocate of the doctrineof doubletruth/that ofreasonand thatof revelation.This doctrinehad beenpreached bycertainAverroists in the thirteenthcentury,but had been condemnedbythe;Church.The triumphof faithwas forthe orthodox,a dangerousdevice.Bayle,inthelate seventeenthcentury,made ironicaluse ofit,setting forthatgreat lengthall thatreason couldsay againstsome orthodoxbelief andthenconcluding somuch thegreater isthetriumphoffaithin11nevertheless believing.How farBacons orthodoxywas sincereit isimpossible to know.培根的最重要的著作《崇学论》在许多点上带显著的近代色彩一般认为他是〃知识就是力量〃这句格言的创造者;虽然以前讲过同样话的也许还有人在,他却从新的着重点来讲这格言培根哲学的全部基础是实用性的,就是借助科学发现与发明使人类能制驭自然力量他主张哲学应当和神学分离,不可像经院哲学那样与神学紧密糅杂在一起培根信正统宗教,他并非在此种问题上跟政府闹争执的那样人但是,他虽•然以为理性能够证明神存在,他把神学中其他一切都看作仅凭启示认识的的确,他倒主张如果在没有启示协助的理性看来,某个教理显得极荒谬,这时候信仰胜利最伟大然而哲学应当只依靠理性所以他是理性真理与启示真理二重真理论的拥护者这种理论在十三世纪时有一些阿威罗伊派人曾经倡说过,但是受到了教会谴责信仰胜利”对正统信徒讲来是一句危险的箴言十七世纪晚期,贝勒曾以讽刺口吻使用这箴言,他详细缕述了理性对某个正统信仰所能讲的一切反对话,然后作结论说尽管如此仍旧信仰,这信仰胜利越发伟大〃至于培根的正统信仰真诚到什么程度,那就无从知道了Bacon wasthe firstof thelong lineof scientificallyminded philosopherswhohave emphasizedtheimportanceof inductionas opposedtodeduction.Like most ofhissuccessors,he triedto findsome betterkind ofinductionthan whatis calledinductionbysimpleenumeration.Inductionby simpleenumeration maybe illustratedby aparable.There wasonceupon atime acensus officerwho hadto recordthe namesof allhouseholdersin acertain Welshvillage.The firstthat hequestioned wascalledWilliam Williams;so werethe second,third,fourth,...At lasthe saidtohimself:This istedious;evidently theyare allcalled WilliamnWilliams.I shallput themdown soand takea holiday.But hewas wrong;there wasjust onewhose namewas JohnJones.This showsthat wemay goastrayif wetrust tooimplicitly ininductionbysimpleenumeration.历来有多少哲学家强调演绎的相反一面即归纳的重要性,在这类禀有科学气质的哲学家漫长的世系中,培根是第一人培根也如同大多数的后继者,力图找出优于所谓〃单纯枚举归纳〃的某种归纳单纯枚举归纳可以借一个寓言作实例来说明昔日有一位户籍官须记录下威尔士某个村庄里全体户主的姓名他询问的第一个户主叫威廉・威廉斯;第二个户主、第三个、第四个……也叫这名字;最后他自己说〃这可腻了!他们显然都叫威廉威廉斯我来把他们照这登上,休个假〃可是他错了;单•单有一位名字叫约翰琼斯的这表示假如过于无条件地信赖单纯枚举归纳,可能走上•岔路Bacon believedthat hehad amethod by which inductioncould bemadesomething betterthan this.He wished,for example,to discoverthe natureofheat,which hesupposed rightlyto consistof rapidirregular motionsofthe smallparts of bodies.His methodwas tomake listsof hotbodies,listsof coldbodies,and listsofbodiesof varyingdegrees ofheat.He hopedthatthese listswould showsome characteristicalways presentin hotbodiesand absentin coldbodies,and presentin varyingdegrees inbodiesof differentdegress ofheat Bythis methodhe expectedto arriveat generallaws,having,inthefirst instance,the lowestdegree ofgenerality.From anumberof suchlaws hehoped toreach lawsof thesecond degreeofgenerality,and soon.A suggestedlaw shouldbetestedby beingappliedin newcircumstances;if itworked inthese circumstancesit wasto thatextentconfirmed.Some instancesare speciallyvaluable becausetheyenable usto decidebetween twotheories,each possibleso faras previousobservationsareconcerned;such instancesare calledprerogativeinstances.培根相信他有方法,能够把归纳作成一种比这要高明的东西例如,他希图发现热的本质,据他设想(这想法正确)热是由物体的各个微小部分的快速不规则运动构成的他的方法是作出各种热物体的一览表、各种冷物体的表,以及热度不定的物体的表他希望这些表会显示出某种特性,在热物体总有,在冷物体总无,而在热度不定的物体有不定程度的出现凭这方法,他指望得到初步先具有最低级普遍性的一般法则由许多这种法则,他希望求出有二级普遍性的法则,等等依此类推如此提出的法则必须用到新情况下加以检验;假如在新情况下也管用,在这个范围内便得到证实某些事例让我们能够判定按以前的观察来讲均可能对的两个理论,所以特别有价值,这种事例称作特权”事例Bacon notonly despisedthe syllogism,but undervaluedmathematics,presumably asinsufficiently experimental.He wasvirulently hostiletoAristotle,but thoughtvery highlyof Democritus.Although hedid notdenythat thecourse ofnature exemplifiesa Divinepurpose,he objectedto anyadmixtureof teleologicalexplanation inthe actualinvestigation ofphenomena;everything,heheld,shouldbeexplained asfollowingnecessarily fromefficient causes.培根不仅瞧不起演绎推理,也轻视数学,大概以为数学的实验性差他对亚里士多德怀着恶毒的敌意,但是给德满克里特非常高的评价他虽然不否认自然万物的历程显示出神的意旨,却反对在实地研究各种现象当中掺杂丝毫目的论解释他主张一切事情都必须解释成由致效因必然产生的结果He valuedhis methodas showinghow toarrange theobservational datauponwhich sciencemust bebased.We ought,he says,to beneither likespiders,which spinthings outof theirown insides,nor likeants,whichmerely collect,but likebees,which bothcollect andarrange.This issomewhatunfair to the ants,but itillustrates Baconsmeaning.培根对自己的方法的评价是,它告诉我们如何整理科学必须依据的观察资料他说,我们既不应该像蜘蛛,从自己肚里抽丝结网,也不可像蚂蚁,单只采集,而必须像蜜蜂一样,又采集又整理这话对蚂蚁未免欠公平,但是也足以说明培根One of the mostfamous partsof Baconsphilosophy ishis enumerationofwhat hecalls idols,bywhichhe meansbad habitsof mindthat causepeopleto fallinto error.Of thesehe enumeratesfive kinds.Idols ofthetribe arethose thatare inherentin humannature;he mentionsinparticular thehabit ofexpecting moreorder innatural phenomenathan isactuallytobefound.Idols ofthe caveare personalprejudices,ncharacteristic ofthe particularinvestigator.Idols ofthe market-place arethose that have to do with thetyranny ofwords andthe difficultyofescaping fromtheir influenceover ourminds.Idols ofthe theatrearethosethathavetodowithreceived systemsof thought;of these,naturallyAristotle andthe scholasticsafforded himthe mostnoteworthy instances.Lastly thereare idolsoftheschools,which consistin thinkingthat someblindrule suchasthesyllogism cantake theplace ofjudgement ininvestigation.培根哲学中一个最出名的部分就是他列举出他所谓的“幻象他用幻象来指让人陷于谬误的种种坏心理习惯他举出四种幻象种族幻象”是人性当中固有的幻象;他特别提到指望自然现象中有超乎实际可寻的秩序这种习惯〃洞窟幻象”是个别研究者所特有的私人成见市场幻象是关乎语言虐制人心、心意难摆除话语影响的幻象剧场幻象”是与公认的思想体系有关系的幻象;在这些思想体系当中,不待说亚里士多德和经院哲学家的思想体系就成了他的最值得注意的实例这些都是学者们的错误就是以为某个现成死套例如三段论法)在研究当中能代替判断Although sciencewas whatinterested Bacon,and althoughhis generaloutlookwas scientific,he missedmostofwhat wasbeing donein scienceinhis day.He rejectedthe Copernicantheory,which wasexcusable sofaras Copernicushimself wasconcerned,since hedid notadvance anyverysolid arguments.But Baconought tohave beenconvinced byKepler,whose NewAstronomy appearedin
1609.Bacon appearsnot tohaveknown ofthe workof Vesalius,the pioneerof modernanatomy,or ofGilbert,whose workon magnetismbrilliantly illustratedinductivemethod.Still moresurprising,he seemedunconscious ofthe workof Harvey,although Harveywas hismedical attendant.It istrue thatHarvey didnotpublish hisdiscovery ofthe circulationoftheblood untilafter Baconsdeath,but onewould havesupposed thatBacon wouldhave beenaware ofhisresearches.Harvey hadno veryhigh opinionof him,saying hewritesphilosophy likea LordChancellor.No doubtBacon couldhave donebetterif hehadbeenless concernedwith worldlysuccess.尽管培根感兴趣的正是科学,尽管他的一般见解也是科学的,他却忽略了当时科学中大部分正进行的事情他否定哥白尼学说;只就哥白尼本人讲,这还情有可原,因为哥白尼并没提出多么牢靠的议论但是开普勒的《新天文学》发表在年,开普1609勒总该让培根信服才对吉尔伯特对磁性的研究是归纳法的光辉范例,培根对他倒赞赏;然而他似乎根本不知道近代解剖学的先驱维萨留斯的成绩出人意料的是,哈维是他的私人医生,而他对哈维的工作好像也茫然不知固然哈维在培根死后才公布他的血液循环发现,但是人们总以为培根会知道他的研究活动的哈维不很高看培根,说〃他像个大法官似的写哲学〃假使培根原来对功名利禄不那么关切,他当然会写得好一些Bacons inductivemethod isfaulty throughinsufficient emphasisonhypothesis.He hopedthat mereorderly arrangementof datawould maketheright hypothesisobvious,but thisis seldomthe case.As arule,theframing ofhypotheses isthe mostdifficult partof scientificwork,and thepartwhere greatability isindispensable.So far,no methodhas beenfoundwhich wouldmake itpossibletoinvent hypothesesby rule.Usually somehypothesisisanecessary preliminarytothecollection of facts,since theselectionoffactsdemands someway ofdetermining relevance.Withoutsomething ofthis kind,the meremultiplicity offacts isbaffling.培根的归纳法由于对假说不够重视,以致带有缺点培根希望仅只把观察资料加以系统整理,正确假说就会显明毕露,但事实很难如此一般讲,设假说是科学工作中最难的部分,也正是少不得大本领的部分迄今为止,还没有找出方法,能够按定规创造假说通常,有某种的假说是收集事实的必要先决条件,因为在对事实的选择上,要求有某种方法确定事实是否与题有关离了这种东西,单只一大堆事实就让人束手无策。